Mikhail Stefanovich assigned to Dynamo Minsk (Photo © Life.com)

Belarusian forward Mikhail Stefanovich has been assigned to Dynamo Minsk of the KHL by the Toronto Maple Leafs. Dynamo Minsk secured Stefanovich’s right as he was a second overall pick of the 2009 KHL junior draft.

Stefanovich, who played for the Dynamo Minsk organization up to the 2004/2005 season, played only six professional games this year, with the Toronto Marlies of the AHL and the Reading Royals of the ECHL.

After a couple of seasons in Belarus Stefanovich crossed the ocean to play in the QMJHL for the Quebec Remparts and in the 2007-08 season he won the Mike Bossy Trophy as QMJHL’s top prospect of the year. Stefanovich spent in the Q also the two following seasons. He also started playing for the Belarusian national team.

Most likely Stefanovich’s first game with Dynamo Minsk will be played on November 30 against Sibir Novosibirsk.

Dynamo Minsk players broke the Spengler Cup in the locker room (Photo © Hcdinamo.by)

Dynamo Minsk players’ celebrations after their victory in 2009 Spengler Cup might have been a little bit over the edge as the trophy crashed on the floor, breaking in pieces. In the picture you can see the team’s captain Ville Peltonen, former NHL player with San Jose Sharks, Nashville Predators and Florida Panthers, hanging a bottle in the right hand with the cup, already in pieces, in front of him. Fortunately the trophy was only a duplicate of the prestigious cup, which is one of the oldest tournament in the world, being held first in 1923.

The KHL, Belarussian team beaten 3-1 the hosts of HC Davos in the final match, after topping the group stage with three wins in four matches, losing only to Davos themselves and skating past Team Canada, Adler Mannheim from Germany and Karlovy Vary from Czech Republic.

The team’s and tournament’s top scorer Sergei Varlamov has been named to the All-Star team, joined by defenseman Duvie Westcott and goalie Andrei Mezin. The other two All-Stars were Team Canada’s Shawn Heins and Mannheim’s Aarhen Spylo, who played in the KHL last year for Vityaz Chekhov.